Tax Tea Party Day - The Bible, Government, and Taxes - Who is America's Financial Savior?

America is in the most serious financial crisis since the Great Depression. Who will we turn to as our financial savior? Will we, like our founding fathers turn to God, or will we spurn the freedom their blood, sacrifice, and toil earned and turn to big government?

In answering this question we must first look at the results when we turn to big government. After the stock market crash that preceded the great depression, the US government under the leadership of Presidents Herbert Hoover and then Franklin D. Roosevelt intervened, and the results lengthened the great depression for 10 years. In an article entitled Another Great Depression? Economist Thomas Sowell citing the work of Richard Vedder and Lowell Gallaway, in their book "Out of Work" shows that the unemployment rate following the stock market crash of 1929 rose from 5% in November, one month after the crash, to 9% in December, but the rate steadily dropped each month thereafter until it reached 6.3% in June, 1930. Then the government intervention began, leading to unemployment rates above 20%!

In an editorial entitled Our Government Problem-Solvers, Sowell points out that the stock market crash of 1987 equaled that of 1929. What was Regan's Response? He did nothing! This allowed the market to correct and was followed by 20 years of economic growth.

President George W. Bush laid the groundwork for a march toward a larger, more socialistic government. President Barack Obama is now continuing this march to socialism as he seeks to implement the failed economic policies of FDR. I have criticized both presidents for their big government policies, and I have done so based on historical experience, the constitution, and more importantly, the Word of God!

When we look at the word of God, we see in Genesis 14:18-20 that Abraham paid at tithe (a 10th) to Melchizedek. When Israel asked for a king in 1 Samuel 8:11-20, God warned the Israelites that a king would take a tenth of all they own! Here, God defines tyranny. Any government that requires as much from you as God requires of you is a tyrannical government and a messianic state (i.e. a government that wants to be God for you by providing for all of your needs.) Of course, a government that provides all of your needs will tax the life blood from you! God's 10% standard seems like chump change when we pay taxes on our income, Social Security, Medicare, unemployment, telephone, cell phone, cable, utilities, gasoline, airfare, hotel, etc. Most American's would be glad if government (federal, state, and municipal) would stop at 10%. Many in America pay 40-50% of their income in taxes when you add up all of the taxes.

Why do we pay high taxes? Because we have demanded high levels of service from our government. High levels of service aren't free. They come at a steep price, high levels of taxation. Like the Israelites in Numbers 11:4-6, we have loved the benefit of slavery more than the benefits of freedom. Our nation's founding fathers would be appalled!

When we look at the purpose of government in the Bible, we see in Romans 13:1-7 that its purpose is limited to this: reward the righteous and punish the wicked. In other words, leave law abiding citizens alone and protect us from threats from without and within. Our founding fathers recognized this when they created a limited form of government. And with limited government comes limited taxes.

If we truly want freedom from excessive taxes, we must let our voices be heard. From the firehouse to the Whitehouse, we need to demand financial accountability, limited government, and limited taxes from our elected officials. And if they won't listen, we need to replace them!

There is a movement in America today called the Tax Tea Party Day. Deriving its name from the Boston Tea Party, these modern day Tax Tea Parties provide an opportunity for citizens to protest excessive government and excessive taxes. You can join tens of thousands of citizens in protesting high taxes April 15, 2009.

St. Lucie County residents can visit the following sites for more info:

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=63944670683

Meetup: http://www.meetup.com/Port-Saint-Lucie-Glenn-Beck-Meetup-Group

Indian River County residents can visit the following sites for more info:

Meetup: http://www.meetup.com/Indian-River-County-Tax-Day-Eve-Tea-Party/

Residents in other counties can visit the National Tax Day Tea Party Site: http://taxdayteaparty.com/.

Click here to watch my sermon on what the Bible says about the size scope and role of government and taxes: Who is America's Financial Savior? The Bible, Government, and Taxes - Tax Tea Party Day.  You can also watch past sermons, including Pro-Life sermons that call our nation to repentance at Covenant Tabernacle's uStream page.

There is no Fear of God Before Their Eyes

Sunday, March 8, in Maryville, IL, a pastor was gunned down while conducting a church service.  The same weekend, 4 shootings occurred on the streets of Ft. Pierce, Florida, most involving yound gang members and two resulting in death.  The words of the Psalmist (Psalm 36), echoed by the Apostle Paul in Romans 3 ring a true today as when originally penned, "There is no fear of God before their eyes!"

How is it that in America, churches are considering posting armed guards to protect parishoners and children are no longer safe to walk to the bus stops without the possibility of being gunned down?  How is it that there is no fear of God before their eyes?  I submit that it is because we have removed God and His laws from our society, our churches, our families, and our lives!  We no longer teach children in public schools that they are created by God, in His images, and that He has a special plan for their lives.  We now teach them that they happened by chance (or random mutation), and consequently, their lives have no real purpose or plan. In 1962, the Supreme Court removed prayer for public schools.  In 1963, the court removed the Bible from education of children in public schools.  In 1980, the Supreme Court, which has the Ten Commandments engraved on it's doors, removed the Ten Commandments from schools.

But I submit to you that long before we removed God, the Bible, and the Ten Commandments from our society, we removed Him from our churches, families, and lives.  Acording to the Barna Institute, only 9% of "born again Christians" have a Biblical Worldview.  The percentage drops to 7% of all Christians and sinks to 2% of mainline denominations (Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian, and Episcopal) and a mere .5% for Roman Catholics.  This is pathetic.  Today's Christian "doesn't have time to read the Bible or pray" but will sit for hours on end in front of a Television set being conformed to this world!

If we are to save America, we must get right with God!  We must read (and love - Psalm 119) His word and law, and we must "humble ourselves and pray, and seek His face, and turn from our wicket ways" so that He can hear from heaven, forgive our sins, and heal our land!  II Chronicles 7:13-14.

If you haven't done so yet, visit Covenant Tabernacle's website and watch my recent sermon entitled "There is no Fear of God Before Their Eyes".  You can also watch past sermons, including Pro-Life sermons that call our nation to repentance at Covenant Tabernacle's uStream page.

Is Secular Humanism Neutral Concerning God and Religion

The issue is not whether schools will include religion or remain neutral. Secular Humanism as mentioned in the earlier posts is a religion!

Charles Darwin is still one of the most revered secular humanists. Prior to Darwinian evolution, students were taught that they were created by God: hence, they believed their lives had a purpose. Today, students are taught that their ancestors swung from trees and ate bananas and that they happened by chance, not design: hence, their life has no purpose or design. This has laid the foundation against a belief in God and has led to feelings of despair and worthlessness in the hearts of America's youth.

Another famous secular humanist is Margaret Sanger, the founder of Planned Parenthood. She founded PP to remove human weeds (African Americans) from our society. She also aggressively promoted sexual promiscuity among young people and longed for the day when a woman would have the right to pay to have her child killed while still inside her womb.

Another notion raised earlier is that individuals don't need God or religion to be good. The question here is who defines good. Some people believe that it's good to steal the belongings of others. A man who lives in my neighborhood is on the sex offender's list because he felt it was proper to abuse another sexually. I have neighbors who believe that wife swapping is OK. If all parties agree, who's to say it's wrong? What if a father and daughter or a brother and sister wanted to have a consensual sexual relationship? Who's to say it's wrong? What about NAMBLA (the North American Man Boy Love Association)? If a man and a minor boy want to have a consensual sexual relationship, who's to say it's wrong?

With secular humanism, you invariably have a lowering of the standards of society -- because the standard, God's Law (the Ten Commandments and the Bible) has been replaced with the idea that I can decide for myself what is right and what is wrong but what if I'm Hitler? What if I'm Stalin? Who's to say I'm wrong?

Our nation was founded by Christians who believed in the standard of the Bible, God's Law, and the Ten Commandments. They believed in public, government sponsored calls for prayer and humiliation before God. They believed in publicly funding education so that our nation's children could be able to read the Bible.

Either we will choose God's word, which doesn't change, or we will choose secular humanism, which allows every man, woman, and child to decide for themselves. With the former, we have respect for God, life, and property. With the latter, we have the slippery slope of every lowering morals and standards we now find ourselves in.

You can choose to do things your own way if you so desire, but do know that there is a price to pay for such a choice.

"The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 6:23.

For sermons on secular humanism, Darwinism, and the Bible, visit Covenant Tabernacle's website.

We Need To Put Prayer Back in Public Schools

From the founding of our country, until the 1960s, the Bible, prayer, and the Ten Commandments played a significant role in our public school system. In fact, the reason our founding fathers started public schools was so that children could be taught to read the Bible. In 1962 in Engel v. Vitale, the US Supreme Court removed prayer for public schools. In 1963 in Abington v. Schempp, the court removed the Bible from the public schools. In 1980 in Stone v. Graham, the court, which has the Ten Commandments engraved on it's doors, removed the Ten Commandments from schools.

In the 1960s, the biggest problems schools faces were talking in class, chewing gum, and truancy. Today, our schools deal with drug and alcohol abuse, rampant sexual promiscuity (and the pregnancy, STIs - Sexually Transmitted Infections, and abortion that comes with such behavior), and violence, including rape, gang activity, and even mass murder.

Are our schools better off without God? You be the judge.

We need to Put Prayer Back in Public Schools!

For sermons on the judicial activism that removed prayer, the Bible, and the Ten Commandments from public schools and brought us abortion on demand and homosexual marriage in Massachusetts, visit http://www.covenanttabernacle.com/covenant_tabernacle_radio.html.